The Ranker-conducted survey has lined up over 500 of the greatest guitarist’s of all time in order.
There are few things in the world of music as cool as the guitar solo, and everyone has at some point pretended to be on a stage in front of thousands of people and shredded the strings on their air-guitar.
We have been blessed over the last one hundred years with generation after generation of world-dominating musicians and performers.
Now, poll website Ranker has gone to the trouble of charting over five hundred iconic shredders from pretty decent to best of all time.
Just to give an idea of the extent of research and detail that the poll goes into, iconic musicians such as James Taylor, Gary Clark Jr, Jack White, Willie Nelson and U2’s The Edge didn’t even make it into the top one hundred.
Nor did the great Neil Young, Rolling Stones legend Ronnie Wood or Metallica’s James Metfield.
In the range of 100th best to 50th best, you’ll find Johnny Cash, Fleetwood Mac’s Lindsey Buckingham, Aerosmith’s Steve Perry, and the man many refer to as the greatest guitarist ever, Rory Gallagher.
Keith Richards, who you might expect to land somewhere in the top 10, lands at 52.
Things really begin to heat up when you reach the top 20 on the list.
Prince comes in at 18, another name you might expect to find much closer to the ‘best of all time’ top spot.
Coming in at number 11 is Chuck Berry, who many consider to be the pioneer of rock & roll music.
Berry is best known for the song Johnny B Goode, which kicks off with an infectious high speed guitar riff.
At number 9 is Queen’s Brian May, at 7 is the undisputed ‘King of Blues’ BB King, and leader of the British blues explosion Eric Clapton comes in at sixth place.
Pink Floyd’s master of soundscapes Eddie Gilmour takes the fifth ‘best of all time’ position, while American rocker Eddie Van Halen comes in at fourth.
The third greatest guitarist ever is Texas thunderbolt Stevie Ray Vaughan, and runner-up in the rankings of the greatest guitar player in the history of the world is Led Zeppelin’s Jimmy Page.
So, have you already figured out who Ranker has ranked as the single greatest guitar player to ever grace this planet is?
It is, of course, the legend himself Jimi Hendrix.
From a young age, Hendrix showed a natural affinity for music, teaching himself to play the guitar and immersing himself in the blues.
It was not until he moved to London in 1966 and formed the Jimi Hendrix Experience that he would achieve international fame and recognition.
His innovative approach to electric guitar-playing led to legendary performances such as his rendition of Star-Spangled Banner at Woodstock in 1970.
His avant-garde style of play made him one one of the most exciting and impressive performers of all time.
Tragically, Jimi Hendrix’s career was cut short when he died on September 18, 1970, at the age of 27.
